How
do you argue with an atheist? To do so
is to argue with a fool, for the Scriptures say, "The fool has said in his
heart, ‘There is no God'” (Ps. 14:1).
Arguing with fools is tricky business and should be handled
carefully. Some good advice for this
task is found in Proverbs 26:4-5:
Do not answer a fool
according to his folly, or you will also be like him. Answer a fool as his folly deserves, that he
not be wise in his own eyes.
We must be careful not to be drawn in
the atheist's folly, which may consist of unfounded speculations, logical
fallacies, and ridiculous hypothetical situations. This kind of approach does not lead to
knowledge, but rather it leads to false justification and arrogance. Instead, we should "answer a fool as his
folly deserves.” Sometimes this means
giving no answer at all, but most of the time it means "always being ready to
make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is
in you, yet with gentleness and reverence” (1Pet. 3:15).
There are powerful arguments in favor of
the existence of God that atheists simply cannot answer. These arguments can be made even without use
of the Scriptures. Even so, Christians
should not be compelled to abandon the Bible when arguing with an atheist
simply because the atheist does not accept it.
Be assured that the atheist will not surrender his weapons for this
battle, so neither should the Christian lay down his "sword of the Spirit”
(Eph. 6:17). The Scriptures support the
arguments we will briefly consider here, and we should feel free to use the
Bible even with atheists.
One argument the atheist cannot answer
concerns the origin of the world or universe (the cosmological argument). It is evident that the world did not cause
its own existence, for nothing cannot create something. There must have been an original cause, and
that cause is Almighty God. Atheists may
attempt to answer this argument in terms of the Big Bang and Darwinian
evolution, but these theories do not give satisfactory answers for origins. They are based on the illogical assumption
that something (in fact, everything) can come from nothing. Atheists may contend that matter is eternal,
but material evidence and the second law of thermodynamics prove that there was
a beginning to the world and that the world is "winding down” and becoming less
organized. Christians know that "in the
beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1), but atheists have
no good answer.
Another
argument concerns the evidence of intelligent design in the world (the
teleological argument). It is evident
that the systems in the universe from the astronomic to the microscopic
function with purpose. There are only
two possibilities for the origins of these purposes – mind or matter. Because matter is incapable of conceiving,
designing, and creating systems with purpose, there must be a mind behind the
origin of the material world. That mind
is Almighty God. Atheists attempt to
ascribe intelligent design to matter by saying that time and chance can account
for all things, but that contention is illogical and baseless. In Romans 1:18-20, the Scriptures describe
such atheists,
who suppress the
truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident
within them; for God made it evident to them.
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His
eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood
through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.
A third powerful argument pertains to
the existence of morality (the moral argument).
It is evident that there is real, objective moral value, and therefore
there must be a real, objective moral standard.
The source of this moral standard is Almighty God. Atheists claim that morality is simply a
product of an evolved society that has determined by experience what is best
for members of that society. If that is
true, then morality is not objective, but rather it is a matter of opinion or
consensus. This is a dangerous proposition,
for it can lead to situations such as that which happened in Nazi Germany, when
the majority consented to the murders of six million Jews. Sometimes atheists will say that there is no
real, objective moral value, but they will then contradict themselves by
speaking of right, wrong, crime, law, evil, etc. They will condemn the Nazis for their
atrocities but then deny the moral standard of God's word that defines what
atrocities are. Thus, we see that
atheists have no good answer for morality but give evidence for God in
themselves, "in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts,
their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or
else defending them” (Rom. 2:15).
Of course, there are other arguments in
favor of God's existence, but only a few are really needed. The Bible itself is a powerful piece of
evidence for God (the Biblical argument), for such a unified volume of accurate
history, science, and geography with fulfilled prophecy could not be produced
by forty or more men writing over a period of more than 1,500 years without the
inspiration of God (2Tim. 3:16). This
argument, along with the cosmological, teleological, and moral arguments,
provides a sound defense for the existence of God that the atheist cannot
answer. Use these powerful arguments
with confidence, and you may make a believer out of an atheist some day.
